Baltimore protests continue after black suspect’s death

Demonstrators marched through downtown area to reach police station where Freddie Gray was taken after his arrest

Hundreds of angry protestors shut down streets in Baltimore on Wednesday to protest police brutality in the wake of a black man’s death from spinal injuries suffered while in police custody.

Protestors gathered for another day near where police stopped 25-year-old Freddie Gray on April 12 for allegedly possessing an illegal switchblade.

Familiar chants of “Black Lives Matter” and “No Justice, No Peace” were shouted as demonstrators, including women and children, marched through the downtown area to eventually reach the police station where Gray was taken after his arrest.

The slogans have become rallying cries for protesters following a series of high-profile police-involved killings of unarmed blacks in Missouri, New York and Ohio.

A police helicopter hovered above the crowd as marchers blocked some streets that stalled traffic for as much as a mile.

Gray’s death comes on the heels of a string of recent police-involved killings of black suspects across the country, including Michael Brown in Missouri, Eric Garner in New York and Walter Scott in South Carolina, among others.

Meanwhile, the Justice Department announced Tuesday that it has launched an investigation to determine whether any civil rights violations occurred during Gray’s arrest and death.

Six officers have been suspended with pay, pending an investigation.

Baltimore police have said the department would conclude its investigation by May 1.